I don't understand the difference between the "Hull Weight, Assembled" and "Rigged Weight". I would have thought these meant the same thing. Why I ask is that I'm trying to determine if I could load/unload a tandem by myself from my car roof using a Thule 887xt Slipstream carrier.

So, it says that it could allow you to roll up to 75 lbs (half the hull weight) onto the roof rack which would then hold the whole thing. All I want to put on top of the car is the main hull. The other stuff (amas and other hooohaa) can go in the car. If the weight of the main assembled hull is only 115 lbs this will work. I assume there must also be some wheels one can by for hand transporting the kayak from car to water, too, yes?

I don't understand the difference between the "Hull Weight, Assembled" and "Rigged Weight". I would have thought these meant the same thing. Why I ask is that I'm trying to determine if I could load/unload a tandem by myself from my car roof using a Thule 887xt Slipstream carrier.

The hull weight assembled means the weight of the main hull only, The rigged weight adds the akas, amas, mast, etc.

Looking at the Thule link you sent it looks like it will work but I hope you are really tall and really strong. Once you’re off the roller you will find that the TI hull is very heavy and hard to push into position,

I helped someone load a standard Hobie Mirage kayak on a setup like you're talking about. It was a breeze until the hull rested on all four cradles. Once it hit the cradles it was a *%*#@. I struggled to get it to slide forward and I'm 6'3"/230 lbs and work out 2 to 3 times a week. I would not have been able to get a TI hull to budge.

One thing I think that most will agree on is that the best way to carry a TI is on a trailer.

It may be that I will go with two AIs rather than one TI just because indent want to be obliged to buy a trailer. I already have a sailboat (Rs100) that would Use my trailer hitch. I now wonder if I could fit two AIs on my roof using the aforementioned Thule 887xts.

I now wonder if I could fit two AIs on my roof using the aforementioned Thule 887xts.

As you can see in my posts earlier in this thread, you can fit two AI's on the roof with one laying inverted and one on a J-rack. A lateral extension bar makes it fairly easy to load them.I put the amas (pontoons) inside the car, so there's only enough room for one passenger.Yes, you can get a cart to wheel an AI or a TI to the water.

The problem I'm trying to sort out is this. My trailer hitch is spoken for by my sailboat trailer http://www.rssailing.com/fleets.asp?fleet=RS100&selection=Details%20and%20SpecBut I want enough Sailyak to handle two people-my wife and i when we are not on the RS100. I have a Honda Odyssey minivan and could potentially lob two AIs on top with the help of a couple of Thule 887XTs. It looks like the AIs could be quite a bit easier for me to lift than one TI. My wife by the way doesn't have great upper body strength so I expect to the one to do any lifting.

Does this sound plausible? What do you think the total weight of two AIs would be on the roof? I'm guessing I could dump the amas and other rubbish into the boat on the trailer to transport those bits.

I'm getting confused. Recent posts have quoted the hull weight of the AI as 80 pounds ( I thought it was 70) and the hull weight of the TI as 89 pounds (I thought it was 120).If there's only 9 pounds difference between the weight of the two hulls, what's the big deal about getting the TI up on roofracks?

The bare hull weight is 40.4 kg (RkBarry - this is what you will have to lift onto the roof)The hull weight assembled is 52.16 kg (I presume this to mean just hull, drives, paddles, seats)The rigged weight is 87.1 kg (everything supplied as standard)

The bare hull weight is 40.4 kg (RkBarry - this is what you will have to lift onto the roof)The hull weight assembled is 52.16 kg (I presume this to mean just hull, drives, paddles, seats)The rigged weight is 87.1 kg (everything supplied as standard)

OK, well as I understand it, the bare weight of the AI is 32kg and that's fairly easy to get onto the roof. Does an extra 8kg really make all that much difference? Since you are only lifting one end of the boat at a time, you are only having to lift an extra 4kg.